Flowing water was discovered on Mars. Is this another step on the way to discovering extraterrestrial life? And if so, what kind of life is it? And what does this mean for the other planets in our solar system?
Written by: Dr. Netzah Farbiash, Young Galileo
On September 28, 2015, the scientific community made noise with the announcement by the American space agency NASA about the discovery of flowing water on the surface of the red planet - Mars. Why are we so excited by the possibility of water being in a liquid state somewhere in the solar system other than Earth? Well, one of the most intriguing questions is whether we, the creatures living on Earth, are alone in the universe. Water in a state of liquid accumulation can hint at the possibility of life!
In a report, NASA announced the discovery of salty water flowing on Mars, at least in the months when the temperature on its surface is relatively high. Evidence of the water currents was found in the canyons and under the craters. The currents that were discovered left dark and long spots in the area that are about a hundred meters long and up to five meters wide. These are stains that were first observed in 2010, but only after a team of scientists thoroughly analyzed the data and noticed that the rocks contain minerals capable of absorbing moisture - did the scientists realize that apparently only flowing water could explain their appearance.
As mentioned, it seems that the water flows during the relatively warm summer months of Mars, and as the temperatures drop towards the fall season, it apparently freezes. Photographs of the surface of Mars show steep walls of rocks, cliffs and valleys; These were apparently influenced by water currents. The origin of the water is not known for sure, but it probably came from salty water reservoirs (aquifers), and possibly even frozen, that are underground, or from water vapor in the thin atmosphere of the planet.
A fascinating chapter in the search for life
Mars, one of the two closest neighbors to the Earth (Venus is our other neighbor), has been one of the most intriguing celestial bodies for man since the dawn of the history of astronomical observations. Thanks to its proximity to us, it has been a central topic in space exploration from the beginning of observations to the present day.
Discovering water on its surface is especially exciting because water is a necessary condition for life, at least as we know it from Earth. Of course, it is likely to assume that if life is discovered on the surface of Mars, it will be primitive creatures such as bacteria and not intelligent creatures, and yet - the discovery of bacteria on Mars will once again ignite the discussion about the origin of life and its presence in the universe. This discovery will open a fascinating chapter in the search for other places where this life may exist.
A huge number of planets
Mars is one of the eight planets in "our" solar system. In "our" galaxy - the Milky Way - there are more than one hundred billion stars (one hundred billion = 100,000,000,000). In the universe we know there are approximately one hundred billion galaxies, that is one hundred billion times one hundred billion suns.
About twenty years ago we still did not know if there were planets similar to the Earth in the universe or if the Earth was a unique case of "our" solar system. Anyone who read the article in the last September issue of "Young Galileo" is familiar with the discovery of Earth's "cousin" - Kepler b425. The significance of the discovery of the planet Kepler b425 goes far beyond the discovery of one planet that resembles Earth's in its data. In fact, this is another milestone that indicates that planets are apparently very common in our universe. If we think about the number of possible planets that are around each of the suns in the universe, we will realize that there is a huge number of planets on which life could in principle develop. However, as we mentioned, on the side of hope there is also an enormous difficulty in discovering signs of life in such remote places.
On the other hand, Mars is a real neighbor. Although it is a distance of tens of millions of kilometers from the Earth, in astronomical terms it is a small distance. Thanks to his proximity, we have been able to send spacecraft and probes to him in the last decades and photograph him with various sophisticated means. The last probe that NASA landed on Mars (in August 2012) is Curiosity, and it already then sent evidence of salts in the ground that might soak up water.
A human colony on Mars
Quite a few scientists claim that the assumption that life exists only on Earth is unreasonable. Try to imagine what it would mean to discover life on two different planets in the same solar system. Statistically, this will almost certainly predict the existence of life in other places in the universe!
And in the meantime, perhaps to test a clearer test if there is life on the surface of Mars, NASA is preparing to send humans there and establish a settlement there. The discovery of flowing water on its surface may greatly advance this idea thanks to the possibility of solving one of the main challenges in sending a human to a dry planet - a source of water.
NASA's original plan was to land humans on the surface of Mars by 2035, but due to the lack of a sufficient budget, the matter may be postponed. However, quite a few entities and individuals are enthusiastic about the possibility of immigrating to a neighboring planet and are ready to invest a large fortune in this. To most of our readers, twenty years seems like a very long time, but remember that only twenty years ago, even Earth-like planets outside the solar system sounded like science fiction. It remains for us to continue to follow with excitement the discoveries from Mars and the possibility of establishing a colony of people on its surface.
* The writer is the Vice President of Science at Carso Science Park in Be'er Sheva
The article appeared in the November issue of Young Galileo – Monthly for curious children
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